The present invention relates to ruminant feed conditioners and modifiers and application techniques relating thereto. More particularly, the present invention relates to exogenous enzyme compositions adapted for treating ruminant feed to improve protein digestability and retention and decrease nitrogen-containing waste.
As described in more detail in U.S. Pat. No. 5,662,901, the practice of applying products containing active enzymes to ruminants feed is known. In particular, such enzymes can be utilized to increase the food value of grains and feeds such as corn, grain sorghum, barley, rye and oats. Application of certain active enzymes to ruminant feed has been shown to increase carbohydrate availability and fiber digestability, which contribute to increased rate of weight gain and feed utilization efficiency.
Despite these improvements in feed utilization, pollution from nitrogen-containing waste, including waste containing nitrates and ammonia, continues to be an environmental problem associated in particular with cattle feedlots and dairy operations. Clearly, if one were able to cause ruminants to increase retention of the nitrogen content of feed, a concomitant decrease in nitrate and other nitrogen-containing waste would be expected to occur. Techniques for this purpose include hormonal supplements for ruminants, but such techniques are increasingly disfavored, in part due to the other possible health effects on individuals consuming meat products from the ruminants.
It can thus be seen that a need remains for a safe and economical technique which decreases production of nitrogen-containing wastes from ruminants. There also remains a need for techniques and compositions which increases protein content of milk from dairy cows and protein content of meat in cattle. It is therefore against the background described above that the advances of the present invention have been made.
The present invention relates to enzyme feed supplements containing fungal cellulase produced by Trichoderma viride which are specially adapted for increasing protein digestability of feed by dairy cow, cattle and other ruminants. Preferred embodiments of the present invention include enzyme formulations adapted for application to easier to digest grains such as corn, and enzyme formulations adapted for application to harder to digest grains, such as grain sorghum, to which are added Trichoderma viride cellulase enzyme. An increase in protein digestability has been evidenced by increased protein content of milk and increased nitrogen retention from the feed.